Zhonghongwang:

Regarding the overall performance of the Chinese economy this year, how should we understand the value of a 5.2% growth rate? What will be the performance of the Chinese economy in 2024? Meanwhile, what opportunities and challenges will we encounter this year, and how should we address them? Thank you.

Liu Sushe:

Thank you, I'll take this question. Yesterday, the National Bureau of Statistics released data on major economic indicators for 2023. It is fair to say that we had a tough year in 2023. The Chinese economy has withstood internal pressures and overcome domestic difficulties. It has generally been on an upward trajectory, achieving main projected targets and making steady progress in pursuing high-quality development. This demonstrates three features: "stability, progress, and an upward trend," as I introduced in my opening remarks. Compared with other major global economies and with our own past performance, China has achieved hard-won economic success in 2023. It's truly remarkable that such achievements were made, given the increasingly adverse impact of changes and chaos in the external environment, the intertwining of domestic structural and cyclical problems, and the ongoing efforts to prevent and defuse risks in key areas. 

Looking forward, China's economic development faces both challenges and opportunities in 2024. In terms of challenges, the external environment is becoming more complex, strict, and uncertain. Meanwhile, domestic demand remains insufficient, some industries face excess capacity, social expectations are relatively weak, risks and hidden troubles still exist, and domestic economic flow is not smooth. In terms of opportunities, the ongoing sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation are reshaping the global economic landscape. The country's high-standard socialist market economy continues to improve. Socialism with Chinese characteristics is demonstrating its advantages, including an increasingly solid material foundation, a further advanced industrial system, and ample policy space. Overall, favorable conditions outweigh adverse ones, as there are plenty of supporting factors to boost the Chinese economy toward stable and sound development.

Let me elaborate on that more specifically. First, the Chinese domestic market contains huge potential. To promote high-quality economic development, China has heavily invested in sci-tech innovation capacity, future industries, green transformation, and the shift from old to new growth drivers. Today's investment generates tomorrow's competitiveness. Second, continuous reform and opening-up, as well as innovation, enhance internal momentum. As reform and opening-up deepens, China is advancing both its digital industry and the digital transformation of traditional industries, accelerating the application and transformation of future technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum technology. With increasingly enlarged development space, continuously expanding application scenarios, and an improving business environment, business entities of all types will surely become more proactive, initiative-driven, and innovative. Third, the international market is poised to unleash more opportunities. With increasing global demand for green and low-carbon products, China's exports of "the new three," namely, electric manned vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products, are growing rapidly. "The new three," among numerous Chinese products, are high-quality, high-efficiency, and cost-effective, forming new driving forces for economic growth and meeting the global market's needs.

Overall, the basic trajectory of China's economic recovery and growth over the long run remains unchanged. An open China will continue to bring more opportunities for cooperation to the world. We have full confidence in the bright future of the Chinese economy. Thank you.

ThePaper.cn:

In 2023, China's exports of "the new three," namely, electric manned vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products, maintained rapid growth. Could you give us an introduction to the current development of new energy vehicles (NEVs)? What measures will be taken to promote high-quality development in this area? Thank you.

Jin Xiandong:

Thank you for your questions. Last year, due to market demand, macro policy, and the joint efforts of the entire industry, China's NEV sector maintained a sound growth momentum, embodying the following three characteristics. First, the scale of production and sales hit a record high. In 2023, China's production and sales of NEVs exceeded 9.58 million and 9.49 million units, surging 35.8% and 37.9% year on year, respectively, and accounted for more than 60% of the world's total, seizing the top position for nine consecutive years. The exports of NEVs soared 77.6% to more than 1.2 million units in the past year, which also hit a record high. Second, the NEVs' market share grew steadily. Last year, NEVs accounted for 31.6% of the total auto sales, up 6 percentage points compared to 2022. By the end of 2023, there were 20.41 million NEVs in use, accounting for 6.1% of the country's total vehicle ownership, an increase of 2 percentage points year on year. Third, supporting facilities continued to improve. At the end of last year, China had built 8.59 million charging facilities, ranking first in the world. A positive cycle is being established nationwide where NEVs and their charging infrastructure mutually support each other's advancement.

Next, the NDRC will fully implement the deployment made by the Central Economic Work Conference on big-ticket item consumption, including NEVs. We will work with relevant departments to improve policies, actively expand NEV consumption, and advance high-quality industrial development. First, we will accelerate the optimization of policies and measures to boost NEV consumption, deepen NEV development in rural areas, and promote the electrification of vehicles in public transportation to keep the NEV market sound and stable. Second, we will boost sci-tech innovation in the NEV sector, strengthen the leading role of auto enterprises in innovation, and upgrade electrification and intelligent technologies to increase the competitiveness of the whole industry. Third, we will accelerate the building of a high-quality charging infrastructure system, especially in key regions, complete a well-structured charging network, and optimize its operation and services to vigorously support the development of the NEV industry. Thank you.